A date usually involves having a nice dinner, shopping, or watching a movie.

But for newlyweds Victor Chen, 31, and Teo Yi Shan, 29, a date often means a long run together instead.

"Besides enabling us to keep fit, our jogs are basically time set aside for us to communicate," explained Ms Teo, an operations executive.

"We share stories collected from the week, catch up on some stuff and sometimes make plans for the future. It's like a jogging date." In fact, these dates are also helping the couple to prepare for the OMB Challenge-10 at the U Run 2013 event on Sunday, where they will embark on a 10km run and 30-storey vertical climb up the NTUC Centre at One Marina Boulevard.

Ms Teo told My Paper that the couple have been joining marathons annually, a year after they met through an online dating agency in 2008.

Their first race together was a 10km race at the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore (SCMS) in 2009.

Since then, marathons have become a constant in their lives, with the pair eventually completing a full 42.195km race at the SCMS in 2011.

But she said that facing a combination of running and climbing in the U Run event is "definitely a stretch".

"It helps that I am able to face new physical challenges with Victor. If I run alone, it becomes routine and I tend to be less motivated," she said.

"With Victor around, I am more confident during runs. I was even able to pick up the courage to join the full marathon, something that I never thought I would do. Nothing seems impossible now."

Mr Chen's job during their thrice-weekly runs is to "pace Yi Shan and tell her to keep going, because her endurance and stamina tend to wear off easily".

"I wasn't a very sporty person (before we met)," said the Web developer, adding that he took up running only after Ms Teo suggested that they try completing a marathon.

"Now, we have a common goal. We give mutual feedback after each run and we learn from each other," he said. "There's something to train for, and it binds us."

Fitness chain Fitness First said that exercising with a partner comes with plenty of benefits, such as understanding where one's weakness lies.

It added: "(Couples) can also motivate each other by setting realistic goals...and rewarding each other when the goals are achieved."

Ms Lilian Loo, senior therapist at Reach Counselling, noted that while some may feel distanced from their spouses when they are busy pursuing their careers, exercising together allows them to be aware of what goes on in each other's lives and "stay emotionally connected...on a regular basis".

"The key ingredient is to make time on a regular basis to relax, interact and enjoy each other's company," she said.

And that is exactly what Ms Teo and Mr Chen intend to do after finishing Sunday's race.

"We're going to reward ourselves with a good time at McDonald's, with a big breakfast," enthused Mr Chen.

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